---
title: Kitimat secondary suite and carriage house rules
question: "Can I add a secondary suite or a carriage house in Kitimat?"
place: Kitimat, British Columbia, Canada
place_path: ca/bc/kitimat
category: Building, renovating and your property
owner: municipal
sources_read: 2026-11-06
review: machine_checked
canonical: "https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/kitimat/secondary-suite/"
json: "https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/kitimat/secondary-suite.json"
---

# Kitimat secondary suite and carriage house rules

**Question:** Can I add a secondary suite or a carriage house in Kitimat?

**Short answer:** In Kitimat a second dwelling unit is allowed only in zones that permit two units, such as R2-A, R2-B and the G3 rural zones; the R1 zones allow one. A detached unit is allowed only on listed sites. A building permit is required.

**Who handles it:** Municipal  
**Cost:** No suite-specific fee found. Building permit fees apply; see the building-permit-fees answer.  
**How long:** The District does not state a processing time.  
**Where:**
- In person: Municipal Hall, 270 City Centre, Kitimat, BC V8C 2H7 (Office hours are not stated in the documents we read.)
- Phone: Municipal Hall, 250-632-8900
- Email: Community Planning and Development, planning@kitimat.ca

## Key facts

- **Secondary suite allowed:** Allowed where a zone permits two dwelling units on a lot: R2-A (detached dwelling, up to two units), R2-B (semi-detached, up to two units) and the G3, G3-A, G3-B, G3-C and G5-A rural zones (detached residence, up to two units). The one-family R1 zones allow one dwelling unit.
  - Source: [Kitimat Municipal Code, consolidated 2026-02, s. 9.1.1.1 (Dwelling, Two-Family)](https://docs.kitimat.ca/docs/kmc-consolidated-2026-02.pdf)
  - Official wording: "Dwelling, Two-Family means a dwelling containing two Dwelling Units on one lot" … "Detached Dwelling with an Accessory secondary suite" … "one detached dwelling having no more than two dwelling" … "one semi-detached dwelling having no more than two" … "Detached Residence with not more than two dwelling units."
  - Source: [Kitimat Municipal Code, consolidated 2026-02, s. 9.4.6.1-2 (R2-A)](https://docs.kitimat.ca/docs/kmc-consolidated-2026-02.pdf)
  - Official wording: "Two Family Residence" … "one detached dwelling having no more than two dwelling units;"
  - Source: [Kitimat Municipal Code, consolidated 2026-02, s. 9.4.3.2 (R1-A)](https://docs.kitimat.ca/docs/kmc-consolidated-2026-02.pdf)
  - Official wording: "one detached dwelling having no more than one dwelling" … "Permitted buildings and structures per lot:"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Coach house or garden suite allowed:** Only on listed sites: an Accessory Dwelling Unit (Detached) is permitted in R2-A at the listed Mulberry Street lots (Plan EPP125446), in C4 at three Oolichan Avenue lots, in C10 at three Loganberry Avenue lots, and in the G3-A, G3-B and G3-C zones (G3-A: only where a clear land area for a sewerage reserve disposal field is available), and in G5-A at one listed parcel.
  - Source: [Kitimat Municipal Code, consolidated 2026-02, s. 9.4.6.1(i)](https://docs.kitimat.ca/docs/kmc-consolidated-2026-02.pdf)
  - Official wording: "Accessory Dwelling Unit (Detached) at:" … "Lots 1 to 25, District Lot 6025, Range 5 Coast"
  - Source: [Kitimat Municipal Code, consolidated 2026-02, s. 9.2.1.15](https://docs.kitimat.ca/docs/kmc-consolidated-2026-02.pdf)
  - Official wording: "Where permitted in applicable Zones, an Accessory Dwelling Unit"
  - Source: [Kitimat Municipal Code, consolidated 2026-02, s. 9.7.5](https://docs.kitimat.ca/docs/kmc-consolidated-2026-02.pdf)
  - Official wording: "G3-A Cable Car" … "Accessory Dwelling Unit (Detached) use is not permitted unless"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Limits:** Detached unit (s. 9.2.1.15): at most 100 m² floor area; must be in place of the second dwelling unit allowed in the principal residence; needs a landscape screen toward neighbouring residences; cannot be subdivided or stratified; no tourist accommodation except with one B&B on the parcel. In R2-A, the detached dwelling and the detached unit must be 3.7 m or more apart, with a maximum of two dwelling units on the lot.
  - Source: [Kitimat Municipal Code, consolidated 2026-02, s. 9.2.1.15](https://docs.kitimat.ca/docs/kmc-consolidated-2026-02.pdf)
  - Official wording: "shall not exceed" … "100 square metres in floor area." … "Subdivision or stratification of an Accessory Dwelling Unit" … "(Detached) is not permitted." … "must be in lieu of the"
  - Source: [Kitimat Municipal Code, consolidated 2026-02, s. 9.4.6.16](https://docs.kitimat.ca/docs/kmc-consolidated-2026-02.pdf)
  - Official wording: "Detached Dwelling and Accessory Dwelling Unit (Detached):" … "3.7 metres"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Parking:** R2-A zone: minimum three parking spaces per lot, two of which must have unrestricted access to the highway; each space 3.5 m by 6.5 m, with at least one within the permissible building area for a garage or carport.
  - Source: [Kitimat Municipal Code, consolidated 2026-02, s. 9.4.6.12-13 (R2-A)](https://docs.kitimat.ca/docs/kmc-consolidated-2026-02.pdf)
  - Official wording: "Minimum three spaces per lot, two of which must have" … "Each parking space shall be 3.5 metres in width and 6.5 metres in"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Permits:** A building permit is required to construct or alter a building (s. 13.2.1.1(a)), plus plumbing permits for new plumbing. Where a property is in a development permit area, no building permit is issued without the development permit.
  - Source: [Kitimat Municipal Code, consolidated 2026-02, s. 13.2.1.1](https://docs.kitimat.ca/docs/kmc-consolidated-2026-02.pdf)
  - Official wording: "a building permit before constructing, reconstructing, repairing or altering a building or structure;" … "a plumbing permit before constructing or altering a plumbing system;"
  - Source: [Kitimat Municipal Code, consolidated 2026-02, s. 13.1.6.8](https://docs.kitimat.ca/docs/kmc-consolidated-2026-02.pdf)
  - Official wording: "no permit shall be issued without prior issuance of a development permit"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Bylaw:** Kitimat Municipal Code, Part 9 - Planning (Division 1 definitions; Division 2 s. 9.2.1.15; Division 4 Residential Zoning s. 9.4.6) and Part 13 - Building
  - Source: [Kitimat Municipal Code, consolidated 2026-02, Part 9](https://docs.kitimat.ca/docs/kmc-consolidated-2026-02.pdf)
  - Official wording: "Accessory Dwelling Unit (Detached) shall not exceed" … "Two Family Residence"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06

## How it works

Kitimat's [Kitimat Municipal Code](https://docs.kitimat.ca/docs/kmc-consolidated-2026-02.pdf) does not use the term secondary suite. Instead, zones allow a number of dwelling units. A second unit is allowed where a zone permits two dwelling units on a lot: R2-A (detached dwelling, up to two units), R2-B (semi-detached, up to two units) and the G3, G3-A, G3-B, G3-C and G5-A rural zones. The one-family R1 zones allow one dwelling unit. We did not read every zone, so ask Planning about yours.

A detached unit (the Code's "Accessory Dwelling Unit (Detached)") is allowed only on listed sites: certain Mulberry Street lots in R2-A, three Oolichan Avenue lots in C4, three Loganberry Avenue lots in C10, the G3-A, G3-B and G3-C zones, and one listed parcel in G5-A. In G3-A it is allowed only where there is clear land for a sewerage reserve disposal field. Detached units are not permitted in the R1 zones.

Detached unit limits (s. 9.2.1.15): at most 100 m² of floor area; it must be in place of the second dwelling unit allowed in the main residence; a landscape screen toward neighbouring residences; it cannot be subdivided or stratified; and no tourist accommodation except with one Bed and Breakfast on the parcel.

## Steps

1. Ask Community Planning and Development which zone you are in and whether a second unit is allowed (planning@kitimat.ca, 250-632-8900).
2. Apply for a building permit; plumbing permits are needed for new plumbing. See the building-permit answer.
3. If the property is in a development permit area, get that permit first, because no building permit is issued without it.
4. Include Homeowner Protection Office registration with a residential building permit application.

## Good to know

- R2-A parking: at least three spaces per lot, two with unrestricted access to the highway, each 3.5 m by 6.5 m, with at least one in the permissible building area for a garage or carport. In R2-A the main dwelling and detached unit must be 3.7 m or more apart. No separate parking figure for the suite was found.
- No owner-occupancy requirement or size limit for an interior suite was found in the Code.
- No suite-specific permit or registration was found. Rental accommodation standards are in Part 13, s. 13.3.4.
- The Official Community Plan says the District must amend the Code by December 31, 2030 to allow 3 to 4 units on eligible residential lots under provincial law, so these rules are expected to change.

## Official forms and pages

- [Kitimat Municipal Code, consolidated 2026-02 (PDF)](https://docs.kitimat.ca/docs/kmc-consolidated-2026-02.pdf)
- [Official Community Plan, consolidated May 2026 (PDF)](https://docs.kitimat.ca/docs/ocp-19may2026-version-final.pdf)

## Related questions

- [Kitimat building permits: when you need one and how to apply](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/kitimat/building-permit.md)
- [Kitimat zoning: find your zone and what it allows](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/kitimat/zoning-lookup.md)
- [Kitimat building permit fees](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/kitimat/building-permit-fees.md)

## The same question elsewhere

- [Secondary suite and carriage house rules in British Columbia, by municipality](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/secondary-suite.md)
- [Terrace](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/terrace/secondary-suite.md)
- [Port Edward](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/port-edward/secondary-suite.md)
- [Prince Rupert](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/prince-rupert/secondary-suite.md)
- [Telkwa](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/telkwa/secondary-suite.md)
- [Smithers](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/smithers/secondary-suite.md)
- [Houston](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/houston/secondary-suite.md)

## Sources

- [Kitimat Municipal Code, consolidated 2026-02 (PDF)](https://docs.kitimat.ca/docs/kmc-consolidated-2026-02.pdf) (read 2026-11-06)
- [Official Community Plan, consolidated May 2026 (PDF)](https://docs.kitimat.ca/docs/ocp-19may2026-version-final.pdf) (read 2026-11-06)

_Checked by script, not yet by a person: the official wording behind 6 of 6 facts was matched to the official text. Gov Handbook is an independent guide, not affiliated with any government. How answers are checked: https://govhandbook.com/methods/ · Canonical page: https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/kitimat/secondary-suite/_